Last weekend the family and I drove to Bentonville, Arkansas to attend my buddy Brian’s 40th birthday party. The next morning on the way out of town we swung through Fayetteville and stopped by the Arkadia Retrocade.
Arkadia has changed a bit since our last visit. There are more games now (close to 95, I think) and they’re laid out more logically now. All the Mario games are up front, all the space games are in a small island together, all the military games are in a row, and so on.
On Sundays Arkadia is open from noon until 6pm. We arrived right around noon and essentially had the place to ourselves for around an hour. The last time we were there was on a Saturday and the place was packed, so it just depends on what time you go and what you want to experience. Some people like it when there’s lots of people there. Me, I prefer the elbow room and the ability to play whatever game I want for as long as I want. The arcade’s business model of $5 to enter and play all the games you want still seems to be working for them.
Both kids had a blast this time. Mason spent some time playing air hockey with new friends while Morgan spent her time working on her Frogger scores.
I, on the other hand, spent some time on this red leather love seat playing Atari 2600 games.
The arcade’s collection of memorabilia has grown significantly since we last visited. This is just one of many display areas toward the rear of the arcade.
I am so happy that the Arkadia Retrocade continues to succeed! I enjoy talking with owner Shea Mathis every time we visit Arkadia and you can tell by the way he talks with each customer that running Arkadia is truly a labor of love. The kids and I all had a great time (and I even caught Susan giving Centipede a quick spin) and we are already planning our next visit out!
Arkadia Retrocade
1478 N. College Ave.
Fayetteville, Arkansas 72703
Phone: (479) 445-7844
Email: endboss@retroarkadia.com
This is exactly why I wish teleportation were possible! If it were, I’d be a regular patron of that arcade! *sigh* There are no more decent arcades in Montreal. All that’s left are “entertainment corners” at movie theaters (with nothing older than 10-15 year-old machines) and maybe one or two arcades that only have modern stuff that are, once more, no more than a decade old. There is this one lonesome Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga anniversary cab at the Montreal Forum, but that’s it. :(
I stopped by there yesterday to kill a couple of hours and chat with Shea. Sorry to have missed our pal VicSage this time.